Popstar’s tweet boosts Newry songstress profile

March 31, 2014

By Christine Keighery

Hugely talented Newry songstress Orlaith Comer received an unexpected endorsement of her singing prowess last week when international popstar, Enrique Iglesias, tweeted his recommendation for YouTube listeners to check out her stunning cover of his current single “I’m a Freak.”

The unprecedented boost for the ambitious young singer came during a monthly competition which features each month on the video-sharing website where regular contributors of music videos are invited to cover a famous artist’s song for the chance to win $10,000.

Speaking to The Examiner about the supportive tweet, the teenage singing sensation says she found it “unbelievable” that Enrique Iglesias would choose to highlight her cover version in such a way. Since news of the tweet broke, she has been inundated with messages from fans of her YouTube videos and from friends and family, all eager to see her succeed in her musical ambition.

The popstar’s approval topped off a great week for Orlaith who sailed through preliminary auditions for the X Factor last Tuesday in Belfast.

The young singer only made the decision to attend the auditions on Tuesday morning, after friends urged her go, so she spent a frantic morning planning her outfit and preparing her songs before making her way to Victoria Square in Belfast.

Once there, she performed her own rendition of Katy Perry’s “Roar” which, by all accounts, received a rapturous reaction from the judging panel. Orlaith admitted that she was “put on the spot” when she was then asked to perform a rap but, despite her nerves, her natural talent shone through and she feels that her mash-up of “Nobody’s Perfect” and “Superbase” was her best performance yet.

“Something just took over” says Orlaith “and I just gave it everything I had and got a great reaction from the panel!

“When they asked me to try something without my guitar – which is permanently attached to me during performances – I thought I wasn’t going to be able to do it. Again, something inside me just took over and once I performed Rianna’s “We found love”, they immediately said they wanted to put me through to Dublin!”

Orlaith now travels to Dublin on 6th April for the second round of auditions which will determine if she makes it to perform for the X-Factor judges for the televised auditions.

With the backing of superstar Enrique Iglesias, a solid fan base built up on YouTube and the first of her public gigs already in the bag after her performance in Crossmaglen’s Ollie’s Youth Cafe last Saturday night, this young songbird with the stunning voice and edgy image is surely pipped to go far.